


indigo - larry - nascar au

by kenthedoll



Category: NASCAR RPF, One Direction (Band)
Genre: (but mostly:), (sort of), Aged-Up Character(s), Alcohol, American AU, Angst, Arguments, Bottom Louis Tomlinson, Canon Compliant, Choking, College Student Louis Tomlinson, Coming out of the Closet, Crossdressing, Daddy Kink, Dirty Talk, Dry Humping, F/M, Feminization, Fluff, Friends With Benefits To Lovers, Gratuitous Smut, Harry Styles is older than Louis Tomlinson, Harry identifies as "straight", Harry lowkey becomes Louis' sugar daddy, Homophobia, Internalized Homophobia, Kink Negotiation, Liam Payne & Louis Tomlinson Are Brothers, Liam is Louis' older brother, Louis Tomlinson in Lingerie, M/M, Manhandling, Marijuana, Model Liam Payne, NASCAR, Road Head, Rough Sex, Smut, Spanking, Strangers to Lovers, Sugar Baby Louis Tomlinson, Sugar Daddy Harry Styles, Switching, car accident(s), elements of BDSM, experimenting, hospitalization(s), inspired by the 2020 NASCAR Cup Series races, make-up sex, pop culture references, race car driver Harry Styles, race car driver Zayn Malik, sexting/phone sex, slow burn? we don't know her, spotter Niall Horan
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-02-10
Updated: 2021-02-15
Packaged: 2021-03-16 18:54:19
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 4
Words: 15,123
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29337111
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/kenthedoll/pseuds/kenthedoll
Summary: Harry Styles identifies as straight, and his top priority has always been to win the Bill France Cup in the penultimate race of the 2020 NASCAR Cup Series season, but after meeting Louis Tomlinson, he isn't entirely sure about all of that.ORAn American AU, in which Louis is an out & proud gay studying at UCLA, who shamelessly crushes on Harry (AKA driver #28), leading the NASCAR driver to question his own sexuality because of it.© ken-the-doll 2021
Relationships: Harry Styles/Louis Tomlinson, Harry Styles/Sara Sampaio, Louis Tomlinson/Original Male Character(s)
Comments: 5
Kudos: 20





	1. Soundtrack 🏁

**Author's Note:**

> ❤️ AUTHOR'S NOTE ❤️
> 
> I had the first few chapters of this story posted here a while back, but decided to discontinue it for some reason. It's been on my mind a lot as of late, though, so I took that as a sign to try and continue it. I hope you enjoy! 😊
> 
> The title is from the song "Indigo" by, NIKI.
> 
> THIS STORY HAS BEEN TRANSFERRED FROM MY WATTPAD ACCOUNT (@ ken-the-doll) BECAUSE OF WATTPAD'S INCREASING RESTRICTIONS

This playlist is [available on Spotify](https://open.spotify.com/playlist/6ikNvXAzsbpADrCQ9sCmYj?si=LDAuXcctReaVbbCNLMJsRQ)!  
Thank you for reading! 🏎

* * *

  1. Indigo - **NIKI  
  
**
  2. 3:15 - **Bazzi  
  
**
  3. Adore You - **Harry Styles  
  
**
  4. Afterhours - **teamwork. ft. Nina Nesbitt & AJ Mitchell  
  
**
  5. Ain't My Fault - **Zara Larsson  
  
**
  6. All Bets Are Off - **Oliver Tree  
  
**
  7. All the Time - **Zara Larsson  
  
**
  8. Always You - **Louis Tomlinson  
  
**
  9. American Money - **BØRNS  
  
**
  10. Angeleyes - **ABBA  
  
**
  11. Angels Like You - **Miley Cyrus  
  
**
  12. Animal - **Troye Sivan  
  
**
  13. Another One - **Kim Petras  
  
**
  14. ...Baby One More Time - **Britney Spears  
  
**
  15. bad idea - **Ariana Grande  
  
**
  16. Bad Romance - **Lady Gaga  
  
**
  17. Beep Beep - **Little Mix  
  
**
  18. Be Kind - **Marshmello ft. Halsey  
  
**
  19. Bel Air - **Lana Del Rey  
  
**
  20. The Best You Had - **Nina Nesbitt  
  
**
  21. Better - **Khalid  
  
**
  22. better off - **Ariana Grande  
  
**
  23. Better to Have Loved - **Keke Palmer  
  
**
  24. Beverly Hills - **Weezer  
  
**
  25. BITE - **Troye Sivan  
  
**
  26. Blinding Lights - **The Weeknd  
  
**
  27. Bloom - **Troye Sivan  
  
**
  28. Bohemian Rhapsody - **Queen  
  
**
  29. Born This Way - **Lady Gaga  
  
**
  30. Boys - **Charli XCX  
  
**
  31. break up with your girlfriend, i'm bored - **Ariana Grande  
  
**
  32. Bulletproof Baby - **The Struts  
  
**
  33. Burn Slow - **Jaira Burns  
  
**
  34. California - **iyla  
  
**
  35. Candy Paint - **Post Malone  
  
**
  36. Can I - **Kehlani  
  
**
  37. Can't Take My Eyes off You - **Frankie Valli  
  
**
  38. Chance on Me - **Ryan Hendrix  
  
**
  39. Change My Mind - **One Direction  
  
**
  40. Change Your Ticket - **One Direction  
  
**
  41. Cherry Flavoured - **The Neighbourhood  
  
**
  42. Circles - **Post Malone  
  
**
  43. Close - **Nick Jonas ft. Tove Lo  
  
**
  44. Close My Eyes - **Hey Violet  
  
**
  45. Close To Me - **Ellie Goulding ft. Diplo & Swae Lee  
  
**
  46. Comin In Hot - **Adam Lambert  
  
**
  47. Cool for the Summer - **Demi Lovato  
  
**
  48. Crazy - **Kat Dahlia  
  
**
  49. Dancing With A Stranger - **Sam Smith ft. Normani  
  
**
  50. Daydreamin' - **Ariana Grande  
  
**
  51. Disgusting - **Miranda Cosgrove  
  
**
  52. Do Me - **Kim Petras  
  
**
  53. everytime - **Ariana Grande  
  
**
  54. Eyes Closed - **Halsey  
  
**
  55. Falling - **Harry Styles  
  
**
  56. Fetish - **Selena Gomez ft. Gucci Mane  
  
**
  57. Finally // beautiful stranger - **Halsey  
  
**
  58. FOOLS - **Troye Sivan  
  
**
  59. Fool's Gold - **One Direction  
  
**
  60. F.U.C.K. - **Victoria Monét  
  
**
  61. Fuck it I love you - **Lana Del Rey  
  
**
  62. Funnel Of Love - **Wanda Jackson  
  
**
  63. Get Like - **Kehlani  
  
**
  64. Gimme What I Want - **Miley Cyrus  
  
**
  65. Golden - **Harry Styles  
  
**
  66. goodnight n go - **Ariana Grande  
  
**
  67. Great Escape - **TINI  
  
**
  68. Greedy - **Ariana Grande  
  
**
  69. Green Eyes - **Wavves  
  
**
  70. Green Light - **Lorde  
  
**
  71. G.U.Y. - **Lady Gaga  
  
**
  72. Habit - **Louis Tomlinson  
  
**
  73. The Heart Get No Sleep - **Tokio Hotel  
  
**
  74. Heart Of Glass - **Miley Cyrus (cover of Blondie)  
  
**
  75. Heart to Break - **Kim Petras  
  
**
  76. Heather - **Conan Gray  
  
**
  77. Holiday - **Little Mix  
  
**
  78. I Always Knew - **The Vaccines  
  
**
  79. I Don't Know Why - **NOTD ft. Astrid S  
  
**
  80. I Feel Love - **Sam Smith (cover of Donna Summer)  
  
**
  81. I Hate Myself for Loving You - **Joan Jett & The Blackhearts  
  
**
  82. I Love You - **Little Mix  
  
**
  83. imagine - **Ariana Grande  
  
**
  84. I'm a Ruin - **MARINA  
  
**
  85. I Only Wanna Be with You - **Bay City Rollers  
  
**
  86. I Wanted Him - **Lontalius  
  
**
  87. I Want To Break Free - **Queen  
  
**
  88. I Want to Know What Love Is - **Foreigner  
  
**
  89. Juice - **iyla  
  
**
  90. Just A Little Bit Of Your Heart - **Ariana Grande (written by Harry Styles)  
  
**
  91. Kickstart My Heart - **Mötley Crüe  
  
**
  92. Kill My Mind - **Louis Tomlinson  
  
**
  93. Levitating - **Dua Lipa  
  
**
  94. Light Me Up - **The Pretty Reckless  
  
**
  95. Lips Of An Angel - **Hinder  
  
**
  96. Love - **Lana Del Rey  
  
**
  97. love language - **Ariana Grande  
  
**
  98. Love Me Harder - **Ariana Grande ft. The Weeknd  
  
**
  99. Love Me Like You - **Little Mix  
  
**
  100. Love On Top - **Beyoncé  
  
**
  101. Loving Nobody - **GALXARA  
  
**
  102. Lovin', Touchin', Squeezin' - **Journey  
  
**
  103. Lucky Strike - **Troye Sivan  
  
**
  104. Malibu - **Kim Petras  
  
**
  105. The Man - **The Killers  
  
**
  106. Meet Me in the Hallway - **Harry Styles  
  
**
  107. Million Dollar Man - **Lana Del Rey  
  
**
  108. Miss You - **Louis Tomlinson  
  
**
  109. Mr Loverboy - **Little Mix  
  
**
  110. My Body - **Young the Giant  
  
**
  111. My My My! - **Troye Sivan  
  
**
  112. No Control - **One Direction  
  
**
  113. Now Or Never - **Halsey  
  
**
  114. obvious - **Ariana Grande  
  
**
  115. Only the Brave - **Louis Tomlinson  
  
**
  116. On & On - **Alok ft. Dynoro  
  
**
  117. OTW - **Khalid ft. 6LACK & Ty Dolla $ign  
**
  118. Overdrive - **Conan Gray**

  119. Physical - **Dua Lipa  
  
**
  120. Plastic Hearts - **Miley Cyrus  
  
**
  121. Pour Some Sugar On Me - **Def Leppard  
  
**
  122. Pretty Please - **Jackson Wang ft. Galantis  
  
**
  123. Primadonna Like Me - **The Struts  
  
**
  124. Quit Playing Games (With My Heart) - **Backstreet Boys  
  
**
  125. Rare - **Selena Gomez  
  
**
  126. React - **The Pussycat Dolls  
  
**
  127. Ride - **Lolo Zouaï  
  
**
  128. Ring - **Cardi B ft. Kehlani  
  
**
  129. Run Away With Me - **Carly Rae Jepsen  
  
**
  130. Say So - **Doja Cat  
  
**
  131. Scary Love - **The Neighbourhood  
  
**
  132. Send My Love (To Your New Lover) - **Adele  
  
**
  133. Sex on Fire - **Kings of Leon  
  
**
  134. Sexy Dirty Love - **Demi Lovato  
  
**
  135. Slow Hands - **Niall Horan  
  
**
  136. Somebody Else - **The 1975  
  
**
  137. Something Great - **One Direction  
  
**
  138. Sorry - **Buckcherry  
  
**
  139. Strings - **iyla  
  
**
  140. Strong - **One Direction  
  
**
  141. Stronger - **Britney Spears  
  
**
  142. Stupid Love - **Lady Gaga  
  
**
  143. Summer - **Calvin Harris  
  
**
  144. Sunflower, Vol. 6 - **Harry Styles  
  
**
  145. Sweat - **The All-American Rejects  
  
**
  146. Sweet Creature - **Harry Styles  
  
**
  147. Sweet Disposition - **The Temper Trap  
  
**
  148. sweetener - **Ariana Grande  
  
**
  149. Take A Chance On Me - **ABBA  
  
**
  150. There You Are - **ZAYN  
  
**
  151. This Kiss - **Carly Rae Jepsen  
  
**
  152. Tongue Tied - **Grouplove  
  
**
  153. Touch - **Cigarettes After Sex  
  
**
  154. Toxic - **Britney Spears  
  
**
  155. True Love - **P!nk ft. Lily Allen  
  
**
  156. Ungodly Hour - **Chloe x Halle  
  
**
  157. urs - **NIKI  
  
**
  158. Vibez - **ZAYN  
  
**
  159. Watch Me - **Jaden  
  
**
  160. We Made It - **Louis Tomlinson  
  
**
  161. What Lovers Do - **Maroon 5 ft. SZA  
  
**
  162. Why Did It Have To Be Me? - **ABBA  
  
**
  163. WILD - **Troye Sivan  
  
**
  164. Yeah, I Said It - **Rihanna  
  
**
  165. You & I - **One Direction  
  
**
  166. You're The One - **Greta Van Fleet**




	2. Prologue - Daytona 500

_"It ain't my fault you came here lookin' like that. You just made me trip, fall, and land on your lap. Certain bad boys smooth. Body hotter than a summer. I don't mean to be rude, but I'd look so damn good on ya."_

[ **-Ain't My Fault by, Zara Larsson** ](https://open.spotify.com/track/0ADG9OgdVTL7fgREP75BrZ?si=sl2t_E-GRNCLUzoyV6-NkA)

****

**\---**

"Remind me again why I let you talk me into this?"

"Because I'm your big brother and you love me?" Liam leaned his head against Louis' shoulder and gave him a hopeful look, as they sat beside one another, on a flight headed to Orlando.

Louis rolled his eyes at that, but he couldn't hide the smile that grew on his face. 

"Yeah, well, you're lucky I do," he nudged Liam's arm away from the armrest between their seats with his elbow, causing him to shake his head in amusement. 

"You're also lucky it's a Saturday, so I won't be missing any rehearsal time with my group," he added.

Louis was a theater major at UCLA, who was in the midst of producing a theatrical adaptation of Shakespeare's poem, _Venus & Adonis_, and his work ethic was so intense at the time, that Louis didn't really feel that he had the time, nor the energy, for much else. 

So, when Liam offered him a weekend away in Orlando, Louis felt grateful, no doubt, but he also felt incredibly stressed. Especially given that Liam was planning for Louis to tag along with him to a NASCAR race and Louis wasn't necessarily feeling all that _enthusiastic_ about it.

"Well, see? It's a good thing you won't be missing out on anything, then."

"Can't stand airplanes, either," Louis muttered.

"Could be a lot worse," Liam shrugged in response. "I've been on some pretty long and agitating flights, but this flight's only about 4 and a half hours, and Zayn really came in clutch with these first class tickets."

Louis glanced around the cabin then, and he nodded in agreement, feeling grateful for Liam's friend's generosity. 

Louis had never even met the guy, and yet, Zayn had no problem buying an extra ticket for him, when Liam asked if he could bring his baby brother along.

"Yeah, he did," Louis sank back into the comfort of his seat, in order to ground himself, among his anxiety about the flight. 

He wasn't quite as accustomed to flying as often as his brother was, considering Liam was a model, who always seemed to be boarding the next plane out of LAX. 

"How do you even know this guy, anyway?" Louis asked curiously.

"We used to drift around and stuff together, during our time back at UCLA," Liam answered. "Us two, and our buddy, Harry. We got ourselves into some pretty sketchy situations sometimes, but man, we had _so_ much fun..." he sighed proudly, with a nostalgic grin on his face, at the thought of finally seeing his old friends again.

"I was never really that serious about cars, but they went on to become NASCAR drivers. Both of them got promoted to the Cup Series recently, too, and they both just placed in the Bluegreen Vacations Duels last Thursday, so I wanted to be there to support them for their first official race of the season, tomorrow at Daytona 500."

Louis nodded curtly. "I'm just gonna pretend like I know what you're talking about," he decided.

Liam just shook his head knowingly, before telling Louis, "you're gonna have fun, I promise, and if you don't, then I'll take you out for drinks after, since you're finally 21."

Louis offered him a smug grin in response. "Let's be honest with ourselves, Li. I've been 21 for years at this point."

"Can't really argue with that," Liam chuckled right along with him.

**\---**

"Here, put this on," Liam told Louis, while they slowly but surely approached the entrance of Daytona International Speedway, behind a seemingly endless line of fellow NASCAR fans.

From his backpack, Liam handed his brother a bright red _Coca-Cola_ lanyard, complete with the number 28 that repeated in a white font around the neck of it. 

It held a clear, plastic slip, which apparently contained one of the tickets they'd been gifted, so, Louis pulled it on without a second thought and let it hang over his chest.

Meanwhile, Liam quickly moved to do the same, with a similar blue _SunnyD_ lanyard. The number 25 repeated all around it in a neon yellow font.

"These are our tickets, so don't lose yours," Liam raised his voice slightly over all the noise, as the closer they got to the track, the louder everything around them became. Louis nodded understandingly, and he followed Liam's move once their tickets had been approved, and they finally got to go inside.

"What's a Hot Pit pass?" Louis asked curiously as they walked, having read the words from one of the cards, within the slip of his lanyard.

"We get to go hang out in the drivers' garages, while the pit crews are working on their cars, and we can stay there if we want to, even while the race is actively happening," Liam explained with an excited sparkle in his big, brown eyes. 

"Compliments of Zayn and Harry, of course," he added, and even though Louis didn't feel the same excitement as his brother, his brows still raised in pleasant surprise.

Whoever these guys were, Louis knew they must've really cared about Liam, seeing as how they handled all of the expenses necessary in order for him to be able to see them race that day.

So, Liam led Louis through the crowded speedway, down to pit road, where several drivers and their crews were gearing up for one of the most prestigious races of the season.

"Do you know where they're gonna be?" Louis peered over Liam's shoulder, when he suddenly pulled his cellphone from one of the front pockets of his jeans.

"Zayn just texted," he informed Louis, with a concentrated furrow to his brows as he read over the contents of the message.

"They're about to pull up to their garages. Come on," he placed a hand on Louis' shoulder then, in order to guide him through the crowd a little faster.

Louis felt some of his blood rushing to his cheeks, and he bit into his lower lip, when he caught a few drivers giving him a curious once over. 

He briefly wondered if they could sense that he was new to all of this, but those thoughts quickly disappeared once he stepped into the threshold of a garage, behind Liam.

They stood off to the side, making sure to stay out of the way of any crew members that happened to pass them by.

"Should be here any moment, now," Liam assured him a short while later.

Then, as if on cue, two stock cars came rumbling into the garage; A bright red Ford Mustang, with black and white decals, alongside a sky blue Mustang, with neon yellow decals.

The drivers killed their engines before one promptly climbed out of his vehicle, adorned in a fire-retardant racing suit that matched with both the colors and the sponsors showcased on the decals of his car.

"Zayn!" Liam immediately recognized him.

"Liam!" Zayn removed his helmet and placed it on the hood of his Mustang, before rushing toward Liam with open arms.

Louis' brows raised the slightest bit then, as he hadn't necessarily expected Liam's friend to be so damn _attractive_. 

The guy wasn't even a model... or was he? 

Either way, Louis wouldn't mind seeing Zayn's face plastered alongside Liam's on every billboard back in Los Angeles.

"It's so great to see you, man!" he pulled Liam in for a squeeze that he immediately returned.

"Feels like it's been forever," Liam sighed once they pulled away from one another's heartwarming embrace.

"I'm so glad you could make it." Then, Zayn was looking at Louis, causing him to gulp. 

"You must be the baby brother," Zayn offered him a welcoming hug as well; One that Louis wasn't exactly prepared to receive, but still somehow managed to return, nonetheless. 

"Louis, right?" he thought he remembered his name correctly.

"Yep," Louis confirmed the driver's suspicions with a content sigh when they pulled away.

"There he is!" Liam suddenly proclaimed once the other driver had finally joined their company, and when Harry removed his helmet, Louis could've swore he saw it all in slow-motion.

First, came a plump set of cherry lips and a chiseled jaw, before a flash of emerald green irises, and finally, a soft chocolatey quiff to top it all off.

Harry was an Adonis, if Louis had ever seen one.

"Haz," Liam greeted him enthusiastically, before he moved to scoop the driver up into a bear hug.

"Hey, Li," Harry hummed as he patted his friend's back a few times for good measure.

However, when they broke away, all eyes were suddenly on Louis again.

"Harry, this is my brother, Louis," Liam proudly introduced the two of them.

"The _baby_ brother, apparently," Louis added, which earned an amused smirk from both of the drivers.

For some reason, Louis had subconsciously been preparing himself for a handshake, but then Harry was leaning in to hug him instead--just as Zayn had--and Louis felt his heart begin to hammer away between his lungs.

Harry smelled vaguely like burnt rubber (not unlike Zayn), with a hint of _Creed Aventus_ , and for some reason, that combination of scents left Louis feeling a little weak in the knees as he wrapped his arms around the man's solid torso. Harry's grin remained pleasantly etched upon his face, even as he pulled away from Louis.

"Cool lanyard," he said then, to which Louis immediately glanced down at his own chest.

"Thanks," Louis replied casually, as he was unaware of its significance, until he glanced over at the red Mustang and finally took note of the fact that Harry was driver #28.

Louis felt his cheeks flush once more, when his gaze met Harry's again, and the driver shot him a friendly (or maybe not-so-friendly) wink.

Then, Zayn relayed the message that it was time for the drivers to head onto the track, and Louis & Liam had the option to either stay on pit road or find a seat in the stands.

"Let's head up to the stands," Louis suggested, as Harry & Zayn placed their helmets back onto their heads and returned to their cars.

"Good idea," Liam said. "I'll run and grab some snacks, if you save me a seat."

Louis nodded in agreement, and they took a moment to watch their friends pull out of the garage and drive away, before they moved to do as they planned.

Afterward, when Liam returned to his seat in the stands with the snacks he promised to buy, he tossed a pack of _Twizzlers_ onto Louis' lap and carefully set a plate of nachos between them, before he promptly removed his backpack from over his shoulder.

Then, he proceeded to pull out a scanner and two sets of headphones.

Louis raised a brow at his brother, while he got to opening up his pack of cherry candy. 

"What is that?" he asked.

"It's a scanner. We can use it to listen to the communications between the different teams."

"Well, obviously we should listen to Zayn & Harry's team," Louis said. "What team are they, anyway?"

" _Roush Fenway_ , along with Ryan Newman and Chris Buescher," Liam answered. 

However, Louis looked at Liam with a confusedly expectant look, so he explained further, "driver #6 and driver #17. I made sure to get noise-canceling headphones, too, because trust me, it's about to get _real_ fuckin' loud once they get going."

Louis nodded understandingly, and they slipped their headphones over their ears, before Liam quickly got to tuning in to the correct channel.

_"Dale Earnhardt Jr. waves the green flag! The 62nd Daytona 500 is underway!"_

**\---**

At one point during the first few laps, Harry's hood came really close to #25's bumper, as he and Zayn had taken the lead.

Louis tapped Liam's arm then and they both promptly moved one side of their headsets away from their ears.

"What's he doing?!" Louis yelled to him over the noise. "Why is he on Zayn's ass like that?!"

Liam laughed at that before he simply explained that it was, "just something in the physics of driving in tandem like that! It makes both cars move faster! He just gave Zayn a push into 1st!"

Needless to say, Louis felt kind of fascinated by it, from a scientific perspective at least.

However, a few moments later, Harry & Zayn both got shuffled behind the first row of cars, and Chase Elliot was the first to cross the checkered line in the final lap, making him the winner of Stage 1.

During Stage 2, driver #24, William Byron, slid across one of the fields and crashed headfirst into a barrier alongside pit road.

Byron was fine. The car, not so much.

When Liam glanced over at his brother to find him pouting sadly around his next bite of a _Twizzler_ , he chuckled and patted Louis' thigh to get his attention.

"You good?!"

Louis just rolled his eyes and explained, "after you invited me here, I attempted to research a bit! Found a _Buzzfeed_ interview with #24! He's my age and I think he's kinda cute! That's about the extent of my research, though!" he smirked, and Liam just shook his head knowingly, before focusing his attention back on the track.

Denny Hamlin eventually won that stage, but Liam still had faith in his friends, and so did Louis, despite the fact that he hadn't cared much for the sport up until that point.

_"The stage winner gets a playoff point that carries all the way through to the penultimate race of the season, with 4 drivers vying for the Bill France Cup, in Phoenix."_

The announcer, Mike Joy's statement raised yet another question in Louis' mind, so he reached for Liam again in order to ask him, "why is it called the Bill France Cup?!"

"Wow, you really didn't do any other research!" Liam laughed in response, but Louis just gave him a look, so he finally answered, "Bill France founded NASCAR!"

Later on, during lap 187, the first massive crash took place with several of the drivers.

 _"Well, there goes half the field!"_ Joy exclaimed. Meanwhile, driver #6, Ryan Newman took the lead. _"Under caution!"_

_"Shit, that was a close call!"_

Louis recognized Harry's voice immediately, despite the rough transmission through the scanner, and he couldn't help the fond smile that spread on his face because of it.

 _"You're telling me. Let's keep a good eye out, yeah, Niall?"_ Zayn's voice came through next, before a third, unfamiliar voice joined in as well.

 _"You know I've always got your back, boys,"_ Niall assured the team. _"Great lead, Ryan. Keep it up with the next green."_

 _"Will do my very best,"_ a fourth voice--Ryan--chimed in.

Then, Louis turned to Liam, and the brothers routinely moved one side of their headphones away from their ears, in order to be able to hear each other.

"Who's Niall?" Louis asked.

"Team spotter!" Liam pointed toward the grand stands just across the way, where several men stood wearing headsets of their own, looking down upon the track with a bird's eye view. "Keeps the drivers updated about what's going on around the track!"

In the end, with 4 laps to go, Stage 2 winner Hamlin pushed Newman even further ahead of everyone else. However, Newman kept a good block on him whenever he tried to pass.

 _"Let's go, Ryan!"_ Harry encouraged, from his placement alongside Zayn, just a few cars behind their teammate.

 _"Don't let him get the drop!"_ Zayn added.

 _"Newman, if you actually manage to pull this off, pints are on me tonight,"_ Niall promised him.

 _"I don't think they can push like this, in tandem, for 4 straight laps,"_ the color commentator, Jeff Gordon, said to Joy.

So, Louis tapped Liam again and curiously asked, "you think he can make it to the end like that?!"

Liam pursed his lips before honestly answering, "it's not very likely!"

As if on cue, Hamlin broke free of Newman's block andsurged forward into 1st place.

 _"Looks like drinks are on me, boys,"_ Ryan sighed self-deprecatingly.

 _"Hey, you still got a solid shot at winning this thing, man. Let's go,"_ the spotter told him, and it made Louis' heart swell to know that their team had such encouraging members as Niall.

Driver #77 was the cause of the next massive crash, as he had accidentally bumped the side of another car, sending it zipping across the lane and straight into the outer wall, resulting in the totaling of several more cars.

 _"Jesus, Mary, and Joseph. Yellow flag,"_ Niall warned the team, as they had all managed to avoid the collision.

 _"Caution is out, and with 2 to go, we'll go to overtime,"_ Joy said, and once the track was finally cleared, the final lap was being announced. _"One more time, for green and white checkers! White flag under green! Next flag will end the race and Newman is there!"_

Louis & Liam mirrored one another with their beaming smiles, when they realized that Ryan had somehow managed to force his way back into 1st place.

If he could just hold onto that position for one last lap, he'd win it all.

The audio transmissions from the scanner in that moment, were an ecstatic mix of;

 _"Let's go!"_ from Zayn.

 _"Oh, Hell yeah!"_ from Niall, and a, _"yes, Ryan!"_ from Harry.

Two more cars toward the back of the group collided with one another and spun out, but when Joy checked in with the color commentator, he was told the flag was "still green," so the drivers carried on toward the finish line.

Then, Ryan Blaney attempted to push Stage 2 winner, Hamlin, forward once more. However, in doing so, he accidentally pushed Hamlin straight into the back of Ryan Newman's car.

With the force of it, Newman spun out headfirst toward the outer wall, and the impact wasn't pretty.

 _"Shit!"_ Harry breathed.

 _"Is he good?!"_ Zayn panicked.

 _"Medics are out,"_ Niall told them, masking his concern with his professionalism. _"I'll keep you posted."_

So, a caution flag was thrown out, of course, while medics arrived on the scene to help Ryan, and clean-up crews worked to clear away the debris from the track.

Meanwhile, everyone watched in concern, be it from the stands or from behind a television screen, as Newman was taken away from the race in an ambulance.

The announcers somberly wished him the best of luck, before the flags returned to white under green, and the remaining drivers finished up the final lap with heavy hearts.

Hamlin eventually won 1st place, with Blaney coming in directly behind him in 2nd, as well as Harry & Zayn, who placed 3rd and 4th.

As confetti fell upon Hamlin and his teammates on victory lane, an interviewer curiously questioned his opinion on the results of the race.

"Well, there is a little celebration, but it is a subdued victory lane right now. Denny, as a race car driver in these moments--the highs, the lows--how do you describe the style of racing?" she asked him. "The adrenaline and the bravery that it takes?"

Hamlin sighed quietly to himself, before he told her, "I think we sometimes take for granted how safe the cars are, but number one, we're praying for Ryan."

**\---**

"What a wipeout..." Louis shook his head in disbelief, as the image of Newman's crash replayed within his mind.

"Yeah, these races can get pretty gruesome," Liam nodded in agreement while he walked down to the garages alongside his brother, and Louis simply bounced his brows at that, as if to say _gruesome_ was an understatement.

Zayn made it back to the garages first, seeing as Harry lingered behind, in order to give Niall a lift over to pit road.

The brown-eyed driver removed his helmet with an audible sigh, and he tucked it beneath his arm like a football, before he moved to speak to Liam & Louis.

"Is he gonna be okay?" Louis asked him curiously.

Zayn just pursed his lips and shook his head in response. "We're not entirely sure just yet..."

"I guess only time will tell," Liam thought aloud, which earned brief nods from Zayn & Louis.

"All we can really do is hope and pray," Zayn added, just as the deep rumble of Harry's stock car steadily entered the garage, the engine was killed, and Harry & Niall promptly stepped out.

"What a day," Niall stressfully blew air past his lips, as he closed the passenger side door behind him and joined in on their conversation.

"He's gonna be fine," Harry shook his head at that, as he was clearly trying his best to see this metaphorical glass as half full, rather than half empty.

"Well, you guys still placed, right? So, in a way, Ryan placed, too," Louis encouraged them, which earned him some appreciative expressions from the three teammates.

"That's a really nice way of looking at it," Niall nodded sincerely. "I'm Niall, by the way," he took a few steps forward in order to hug Louis. "Liam's told us a lot about you."

Louis' cheeks flushed yet again at the sudden bout of physical affection, and he hugged Niall back nonetheless, but he became a little distracted when his gaze met Harry's over Niall's shoulder.

"And we're huggers, if you couldn't already tell," Harry told him with an amused grin.

Louis just smiled back, finding himself completely smitten by this physical embodiment of his very own Adonis, before he honestly replied to him, "that's not gonna be a problem for me, at all."


	3. Auto Club 400

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Louis tags along with his brother to the team's third race at Auto Club Speedway, all before joining them for drinks at a local karaoke bar.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ❤️ AUTHOR'S NOTE ❤️
> 
> Double update because I lack impulse control.

_"You know I'm your type, right? Right. Mark your calendar. Tonight's gonna be your life's highlight. Boy, we gon' roll up, we gon' roll out. Look, this is the land of the fast, bet you ain't used to that. First to one-up your last, she can stay in your past. Honey, I don't stop for no one, but I'd pause for you."_

[ **-Indigo by, NIKI**](https://open.spotify.com/track/349Wc5mDu52d4Uv8Eg9WZv?si=NoXxgVZmTn6INpl9YtImzw)

****

**\---**

It was nearly two weeks after Daytona 500, when Louis finally began to accept the fact that he had a crush on his brother's best friend.

He figured the fact that he chose to watch the next Cup Series race on TV, without any persuasion from Liam, proved as much.

It was back to business as usual as soon as their plane touched down back in California. Liam returned to working various high-class events along the coast as well as the occasional photoshoot, of course, while Louis returned to his studies in his apartment in Westwood.

For Louis, studying usually entailed schoolwork, alongside keeping his theater group updated on the progress of their play, and proofreading every aspect of the script he wrote for it a million times over because _he_ _just knew_ there was bound to be a mistake somewhere.

However, it was a Friday and Louis had already attended and returned from his classes, so he was currently lazily draped over his couch, scrolling on his phone and completely ignoring the episode of TMZ that was playing before him.

In fact, Louis had felt distracted quite a lot as of late, and up until a few days ago he wasn't entirely sure why. He just couldn't stop thinking about those races.

Initially, he just brushed it off because he never had any interest in the sport before, so he simply chalked it up to the fact that he was glad to be making memories with his brother; Which was true, but after a little while, Louis began to think there may have been another underlying reason for his persistent daydreams, and once that thought took precedence in the forefront of his mind, Louis knew that he was fucked.

Completely, and utterly, _fucked_.

So after digging through Liam's various social media accounts, Louis discovered that Zayn and Harry both only had an _Instagram_ and a _Twitter_ , and he promptly followed them on both platforms.

He didn't feel strange about it, either, considering they were his brother's best friends. Plus, judging by their follower counts--on either app--Louis figured the two were probably used to the clout by then.

After pressing _follow_ on Zayn's _Twitter_ , a few more accounts were suggested to him and, after recognizing the handles of both Ryan Newman and Niall Horan, he immediately followed the two of them as well.

Niall's most recent retweet was an image, posted just a few days before, by _Roush Fenway Racing._

Louis breathed a sigh of relief, and he favorited the tweet as well because he hadn't been updated on the driver's condition, since he'd been hospitalized at Daytona 500. 

Louis was glad that Ryan appeared to be headed toward a full recovery. Especially now that he knew the guy was a father, too.

Then, he was swiping _Twitter_ away and switching over to _Instagram_ , where he inevitably lost himself within the timelines of the most recent years of Zayn & Harry's lives.

He had scrolled as far down Harry's account as the year 2016 (during Liam's last year at UCLA), when his phone began to vibrate in his palm. 

That's when he nearly jumped out of his skin at the sight of his brother's contact photo, which suddenly overtook the image of 21-year-old Harry & Zayn that Louis had previously been admiring.

Nevertheless, he immediately answered the call.

"Cock block," Louis narrowed his eyes at his brother, after Liam greeted him with a chipper wave over _FaceTime_.

 _"Uh..."_ Liam raised a brow at that, but quickly decided that it wasn't important. _"I'm not even gonna bother asking, 'cause I'm sure I don't wanna know."_

Louis just rolled his eyes in response, before he moved to sit up on the couch, so Liam could see him a little better.

 _"Anyway,"_ Liam beamed. _"I'm not sure if you'd be interested in tagging along with me to another race, but Zayn just invited me out to Fontana, for Auto Club 400 this Sunday."_

Louis seemed to perk up a bit then, which resulted in the smug grin that spread across Liam's face in the next instant. 

Normally, Louis wouldn't have cared to put himself through another bout of flight anxiety just to watch a bunch of grown men drive around in circles for a few hours, but Fontana was only about an hour away by car, and Louis would be lying if he said he wasn't interested in hanging out with Liam and his friends again.

 _"I told them I could handle the tickets this time around, but they insisted, so I've got an extra here,"_ Liam said, and Louis seemed to be taking his time in thinking it over, so he added, _"if you decide you want to go, that is."_

Then, as casually as he could manage, Louis told him, "I mean, I don't think I'm doing anything Sunday..."

Liam bit into his lower lip, in an earnest attempt to stifle his enthusiasm. _"So, is that a yes?"_

"It's a _probably_ ," Louis answered, despite nodding his head affirmatively, and Liam just shrugged in response.

 _"Good enough for me,"_ he said. _"I'll let them know. See you Sunday. Bye!"_

With that, Liam was gone, and Louis was left to shake his head to himself in disbelief. 

He never would've thought it would be that easy for Liam to talk him into another race, but then again, he never would've thought he'd end up crushing on one of the drivers, either.

Louis glanced toward the front door of his apartment then, staring at the bright red lanyard with the repeating #28 that seemed to stare right back at him--almost mockingly--from where it hung on a hook beside his car keys.

He audibly sighed to himself.

_Jesus, take the wheel._

**\---**

_"Auto Club 400 is underway!"_

Liam got his scanner out, just as he had during the previous race, and Louis quickly pulled his pair of headphones over his ears, eager to hear what was going on as he nibbled on a typical cherry _Twizzler_.

They had Hot Pit passes this time around, too. However, they ran a little bit late because Louis wasn't really keeping track of the time while he was getting ready, so they didn't get to see Zayn or Harry before the race began, and Louis silently cursed himself for it.

_Louis had climbed into the passenger side of his brother's car, with his fringe styled upward to reveal his forehead, and a pair of jeans so tight, it was a wonder you couldn't see his pulse through them._

_Then, after buckling up, Liam noticed the way Louis' fingertips began to absentmindedly fiddle with the red #28 lanyard that was hanging haphazardly around his neck._

_"What?" Louis asked when he realized he was being stared at, but Liam simply shook his head with a knowing smile, before he began the drive._

The track looked rough, to say the very least. 

Mike Joy had even mentioned the way Jimmie Johnson's helmet cam seemed to be bouncing around unusually, due to the uneven leveling of the pavement, and Louis silently hoped he wouldn't be witnessing another horrific Newman-esque crash that day.

After a brief rundown of the events of the previous race, Joy and the color commentator, Gordon, began to discuss the importance of winning stage points.

 _"Mike, we've talked about how important these stage points are,"_ Gordon began. _"We saw where Chase Elliot won both stages last week, in Vegas. He also won a stage in Daytona, and it has kept him up there in the top 10 in points so far, even though he hasn't had good results. So, that's why all these drivers and teams work so hard for these stage points."_

 _"You're right, he's not had a top 10 finish, but he's well up in the point standings,"_ Joy agreed, before proudly announcing, _"final lap, Stage 1!"_

After the cars crossed the finish line once more, Joy added, _"green and white checkered flag in the air for stage winner, Alex Bowman."_

Then, near the end of Stage 2, Joy commented, _"final lap of the stage. Kevin Harvick is in position to get the final stage point."_

However, by the end of said lap, Harvick had been shuffled to the middle of the leading cluster of cars--alongside Zayn & Harry--and with Joy's next comment, Stage 2 was complete.

 _"Ryan Blaney and team_ Penske _win Stage 2!"_

 _"Losing a lot of time here on the #19! They cannot get the lugs off of that left rear!"_ Gordon exclaimed during the final stage, over the loud roars of the stock car engines. _"Huge, huge bad luck here for the #19! Impact gun issues!"_

Louis moved his arm toward his brother in order to ask what they were talking about, and Liam was already moving one side of his headset away from his ear, fully prepared to explain. 

"Tool malfunction!" he said. "They couldn't get one of the tires off, so #19 has to wait on pit road for another impact gun!"

"Shit!" Louis' brows raised at that. "Tough luck, pal!"

 _"And here is the radio for team #19,"_ Joy announced, before the crackling sound of the drivers' voices could be heard, coming from their headsets.

 _"What the fuck is going on?! What was that?!"_ the crew chief, James, exclaimed.

 _"The hell happened?"_ Hamlin's voice chimed in.

 _"Went for a refuel and there was something with the gun!"_ replied #19, Martin Truex Jr.

Then, Gordon mentioned how the pit crew member appeared to be injured. _"Looks like something is wrong with his hand. He wasn't able to switch the gun around from tightening to loosening the lug nuts."_

 _"Might've caught a finger,"_ Joy speculated. _"Those air guns, they have a lot of torque to them. Medical personnel are looking things over."_

The cars continued to zip around the track, until the final lap of the race, where Harry & Zayn both placed between 3rd and 10th.

_"Alex Bowman comes to the stripe to win the Auto Club 400!"_

**\---**

When Harry, Niall, and Zayn joined Louis & Liam for happy hour at a local karaoke bar that same evening, Louis wasn't entirely prepared for the sharp intake of breath he was forced to inhale through his nose when his gaze met Harry's from across the room.

He took a hesitant sip of his beer to distract himself, as he sat across from Liam, who had also been nursing a pint, on the opposite side of the booth. Liam turned then, to discern whatever it was that Louis seemed so concerned with, and he quickly recognized his friends' familiar faces.

No longer clad in their racing gear, Zayn & Harry appeared rather lax and casual that night, despite the amount of attention they received from the moment they walked in the door. 

Seemingly _everyone's_ head had turned. 

The first thing Louis took note of, as he gave them both a quick once over from a distance, was the fact that their skin was littered in a variety of tattoos.

Zayn appeared to have a lot more than Harry; The designs of ink trailed up along the front and sides of his neck, as well as his hands and fingers, which he tucked into the pockets of his expensive-looking bomber jacket.

He also had the number 25 tatted just below his jawline, and Louis briefly wondered if Harry had a rogue 28 hiding somewhere beneath his loose baseball tee, or maybe even tucked away within the confines of his dark jeans.

The drivers moved toward the bar first, presumably to grab themselves something to drink, while Niall carried on toward the booth. 

He didn't appear to be concealing any piercings or tattoos under his bulky hoodie, or at least none that Louis had noticed when Liam moved to greet him with a warm hug. 

Nevertheless, Louis stood from the booth, in order to hug Niall as well and bid him a friendly _hello_. In the meantime, Zayn & Harry finally joined them with 3 more pints, which they set upon the table, before they all respectively took their seats.

Niall & Louis slid into one side of the booth, while Zayn, Liam, & Harry slid into the opposite, leaving Harry & Louis to momentarily stare when they realized they were sitting directly across from one another.

Neither of them said anything about it, though, and Harry reached for his pint without any qualms, leading Louis to watch the way his Adam's apple bobbed when he took a few generous gulps.

Despite Louis' constant attempts to cease his hands' clamminess, by sliding his palms along the outer thighs of his jeans, the vibe between the five of them was quite comfortable that night. 

It may have mainly been due to the fact that four of them had already been close friends for years by that point, but they never made Louis feel like a 5th wheel, even as young as he was in comparison, and he was incredibly grateful for that.

Plus, Louis knew--from about 21 years of experience--that he could trust his older brother's judgment. Liam's intuition was off the charts when it came to picking his friends and, given his track record so far, Louis wished he could relate. 

So, in an earnest attempt at making conversation, Louis casually brought up the tweet he'd seen earlier that week.

"Glad to see Ryan is gonna be okay," he hummed around another sip of his beer, and he completely missed out on Harry's wandering eyes that watched Louis' lips, as the tip of his tongue instinctively swiped the foam from them.

The rest of them were just staring at him as well, with expressions that weren't very telling, so Louis raised a brow in confusion.

"What?"

"Oh, it's nothing," Zayn assured him, shaking his head. "It's just that Liam here kinda made it sound like you weren't all that interested in racing, so I guess we're all just a little surprised that you showed up to support us again today."

"Yeah, it means a lot," Harry added, and Louis found himself fiddling with his lanyard again--out of (what was quickly becoming a) habit--where the neck of it had been hanging out of the front pocket of his jeans.

"It really does," Niall nodded in agreement with his teammates. "Newman's already chompin' at the bit to get back behind the wheel," he shook his head knowingly, before he took another swig of his beer.

"Well, here's to his speedy recovery," Louis raised his glass over the center of the table, to which they all toasted in honor of their injured colleague, and mirrored one another in taking a drink.

By the time they were all feeling tipsy, Louis had grown a bit impatient as he stared across the bar at a small stage, where a pair of microphones were mounted atop their stands. Then, he shifted his attention back onto the table, where three pints stood empty before him, and he silently contemplated his decision.

The mics had remained completely idle the whole night through, with no one else stepping up to take a swing at the karaoke machine, until Louis was suddenly throwing caution to the wind with a single request.

"I wanna sing something..."

All eyes at the table were on him yet again, and even as drunk as he was, Louis felt content beneath their curious gazes. However, they all remained silent, so Louis disappointedly pouted, albeit quite adorably.

"...but I don't wanna go alone," he added.

Liam finally spoke up, after he'd finished the last gulp of what must've been his fifth pint. 

"Well, don't look at me. There's no way I'm holding a note right now," he giggled into his glass, earning an amused grin from Zayn at his side.

"Yeah, think I'll sit this one out," Niall slurred in agreement.

"Harry'll go," Zayn chimed in then, which caused both Harry & Louis to momentarily freeze in their seats, as he suddenly put his teammate on the spot. "He's got a great set of pipes. Don't you, Haz?"

So Harry offered Zayn a tight, pursed-lipped smile, as well as one of his middle fingers, before he faced Louis once more. 

Harry was fully prepared to come up with some sort of excuse, but with the way Louis' blue eyes glimmered with the slightest bit of hope--even amidst the dimmed lights of the bar--Harry found himself unable to refuse.

"Uh... yeah," he nodded, "I can do that."

"Yay!" Louis cheered happily, and when Harry stood and began to lead the way over to the stage, he quickly stood and followed along. 

"You can choose the song, if you want," Louis said.

"Nah, you go ahead," Harry glanced over at him with a charming smile, to which Louis timidly nodded in response, having been momentarily distracted by the set of dimples that had appeared to either side of Harry's lips.

Harry obliviously shook Louis from his trance by handing him the karaoke index, as well as one of the microphones, whereupon he patiently waited for Louis to make a selection. It took him a second to do so, as his eyes wandered over the slightly blurry list of songs, but before too long, Louis finally declared that he had made his choice.

"Let me see," Harry beckoned Louis over to him with a flippant wave of his hand, and when Louis revealed the name of the song he wished to sing, Harry's grin widened comically. 

"Let's do it," he nodded enthusiastically.

With that, Harry knelt before the karaoke machine in order to load up the correct song, and Louis was practically beaming like a ray of sunlight. Inevitably, a countdown appeared on the small television screen before them, as well as the flat screen on the wall behind them, and Harry reached for the other mic.

"You start," he encouraged Louis, who took a deep, shaky breath, as the music began to drown out the noise of the chattering patrons all around them.

Then, when the lyrics finally appeared on both screens, [Louis promptly nailed the intro.](https://open.spotify.com/track/3MjUtNVVq3C8Fn0MP3zhXa?si=QTT3YxusRMquZyxBTb2M6g)

 _"Oh, baby, baby, how was I supposed to know... that something wasn't right here?"_ he began, which earned some cheerful noises from a few randoms, as well as a low whistle from Harry at his side.

"OW!!" Liam shouted supportively, going so far as to cup his hands around his mouth, in order to be the loudest in the room.

_"Oh, baby, baby, I shouldn't have let you go... and now you're out of sight, yeah. Show me how you want it to be... tell me, baby, 'cause I need to know now, oh, because..."_

Harry unexpectedly faced Louis then, causing the younger man to flush bright red (which Louis would simply blame on the alcohol), as he raised his mic to his lips to sing the chorus with a voice like warm honey.

_"My loneliness is killing me..."_

_"...and I..."_ Louis handled the higher notes with ease, despite how flustered he felt whilst standing there with the guy of his dreams, drunkenly singing Britney Spears at the top of their lungs, in front of God and everybody.

_"...I must confess, I still believe..."_

_"Still believe!" Louis giggled into the mic, causing Harry to do the same._

_"...when I'm not with you, I lose my mind. Give me a sign..."_

_"Hit me, baby, one more time!!!"_ Louis, Harry, and _the entire bar_ seemed to scream the lyrics in unison, before breaking into scattered applause.

Louis didn't even have very much time to recover from his bout of laughter, before Harry confidently took the next verse.

_"Oh, baby, baby, the reason I breathe is you... boy, you got me blinded."_

His green eyes met Louis' blue again, and Louis' grip tightened around his mic a bit, when Harry casually held the eye contact through the next line.

_"Oh, pretty baby, there's nothing that I wouldn't do... it's not the way I planned it. Show me how you want it to be... tell me, baby, 'cause I need to know now, oh, because..."_

Louis would've missed his cue, had it not been for the feminine shriek of approval coming from somewhere near the bar, which fortunately brought him back down to Earth.

_"My loneliness is killing me..."_

_"...and I..."_ Harry sang backup this time around.

_"...I must confess, I still believe..."_

_"Still believe!"_

_"...when I'm not with you, I lose my mind. Give me a sign..."_

_"Hit me, baby, one more time!!!"_

**\---**

The two were practically inseparable for the rest of the night.

They were also a little too drunk to notice, let alone care, when they were all gathered around the pool table, and Niall caught the way Harry was blatantly staring at Louis.

Niall had lost count of how many times he'd glanced over at the pair and watched Harry's nose scrunch up in adoration, while he was sat there on a barstool next to Louis, lost in deep conversation. 

Niall knew that look because he knew Harry like the back of his hand, as did Zayn & Liam, but they were a bit too preoccupied with their game of pool to really notice.

Niall had only ever seen "The Look" Harry was giving Louis in that moment, when Harry was still with his ex. Speaking of which, the last time he checked, Harry was _straight_ , so Niall wasn't exactly sure why he'd been casually flirting with Louis ever since they'd returned to the booth from their karaoke performance.

He knew it wasn't any of his business, though, and of course, he wouldn't be upset if Harry were to come out one day. 

However, if Harry really _was_ straight, then Niall felt that it was a bit rude--not only to Louis, but to Liam as well--for him to start stringing him along like that.

"Hey, Haz," Zayn called from the far end of the pool table. "You gonna quit flirting with Louis and play with us, or what?"

So, apparently, Niall _wasn't_ the only one who'd noticed.

Louis' cheeks were tinged pink, along with the tips of his ears, when Zayn called them out. He hadn't even realized Harry had been flirting with him. 

Only, Harry _wasn't_ flirting with him... because Harry's _straight_...

Right?

Yes, as frustrating as it was for him to accept, Louis hadn't failed to miss _several_ of the photos featuring the insanely gorgeous _Victoria's Secret_ Angel, Sara Sampaio--AKA _Harry's ex-girlfriend_ \--whilst he was waist deep in Harry's _Instagram_ timeline.

"Harry's straight," Louis abruptly thought aloud, while Harry stood to accept a pool cue from Liam.

Zayn just smirked at that. 

"For now, at least," he said, and the rest of them, including Harry, shared a light-hearted chuckle.

Louis didn't quite know what exactly to make of Zayn's statement--nor his friends' nonchalant reactions to it--but nevertheless, Louis tried his very best to stand by his own statement.

 _He didn't mean anything by it,_ Louis told himself, as he watched Harry lean over the table and line up his first shot.

 _It wasn't flirting,_ Louis told himself, when Harry thrusted the end of his pool cue toward the white cue ball and promptly broke the rack, causing his bicep to flex absolutely _deliciously._

 _Harry's straight,_ Louis told himself, in order to get to sleep that night.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> #FreeBritney (!!!)


	4. Bel Air, CA

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> After several weeks (and several races) apart, Louis & Co. reconvene at Zayn's spot in Bel Air for a chance to unwind.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ❤️ SPOILER WARNING ❤️  
> for those of you who haven't yet seen Avengers: Infinity War and/or Endgame.
> 
> (P.S; Slow burn? We don't know her)

_"Oh, I want to know just how to love you, the jewel of California. Oh, I want to skip stones on your skin, boy, and drown me in your water. And my boy like a queen, unlike one you've ever seen. He knows how to love me better. A hit of dopamine. Higher than I've ever been. He knows how to love me better."_

[ **-Lucky Strike by, Troye Sivan** ](https://open.spotify.com/track/4RoArPM0AsuW3h8hW8xtnr?si=uIDML6uQQMW0xnOf-JjP-w)

**\---**

Louis didn't see his new friends again for a while, due to the fact that a majority of the Cup Series races took place out of state, but thanks to social media, Louis still felt like he was in the loop.

Zayn & Harry had taken part in 12 Sundays worth of races since then, not counting the week off they had back in April, and they'd been progressing quite impressively throughout.

Zayn won two stages in Atlanta, then he finished 1st in the final stage in Talladega, winning the race for his team, and soon after, Harry won their race in Concord.

Then, it was another Sunday in sunny June, and they were back in California for their next local race at Sonoma Raceway, with Liam & Louis in attendance.

Neither of the two drivers won the race that day, but Harry won Stage 1, before they both ended up placing between 2nd and 5th in the home stretch of the final stage.

So that night, Zayn took it upon himself to invite all of them over to his condo for drinks. Liam drove Louis there, considering he'd also driven him to the race, and after following Liam inside, they waited patiently for Zayn to shower and change out of his racing gear.

_"Make yourselves at home," he said before he moved to do so. "Li, you know the place pretty well. You mind showing Lou around for me?"_

_"Sure thing," Liam accepted the task and proceeded to lead Louis throughout the modern abode. It didn't take very long for him to discern that Zayn must've spent a pretty penny every month, in order to cover his rent, but that was to be expected of someone living in Bel Air._

Then, Niall & Harry arrived, shortly after a damp-haired Zayn emerged from his bedroom; All of which were dressed as casually as they had been during their night out together in Fontana, and Louis didn't hesitate to cast his gaze over the tall, green eyed drink of water that had just entered the condo with a couple six packs of _Coors Light_ tucked under his arm.

Niall followed Harry inside with a stack of _Lamonica's NY Pizza_ boxes, before promptly nudging the door shut behind him with his heel. Seeing as they'd just waltzed in like they owned the place, it was clear that Harry & Niall had become quite familiar with it as well, which wasn't all that surprising to Louis, either, considering they'd been friends for so long.

It was also nice for him to watch the four of them resume such a strong, resilient friendship, even after they hadn't seen one another in months.

Then, he found himself thinking that he would allow any of them the same privileges in his own apartment, should the occasion ever arise, before he swallowed thickly at the sudden thought of Harry seeing his apartment in the state it had been in as of late.

But Louis cut himself some slack because he'd been a pretty busy bee, ever since his theater group began their Shakespearean production last fall and, given that he lived alone, he didn't care too much about the mess, until it would begin to interfere with his routine.

Nevertheless, as Harry & Niall walked the pizza and beer over to the kitchen, Louis fished his phone from his pocket in order to set a reminder to clean up around his place, whenever it would be that he got back to it.

When Zayn retrieved a full bottle of _Hennessy_ from the freezer, it became quite clear that they planned to get shit-faced that night, if the beer hadn't already been a dead giveaway.

Louis didn't really consider himself a lightweight, but he was still glad that he decided to make Liam stop by his apartment earlier, so he could roll a blunt in the passenger seat on the way over.

Crossfades definitely weren't _everyone's_ cup of tea, but they helped Louis to be able to ground himself whenever he'd get a little _too_ drunk.

"Shot?!" Zayn called out, loudly enough to be heard by everyone in the condo, as he worked to unwrap the seal on the bottle.

"Shot!" Niall answered in the same octave, before he immediately turned toward one of the cabinets, in order to pull a few shot glasses from inside. "Who else is gettin' schwifty, tonight?"

"Please, don't say that word under my roof ever again," Zayn playfully scolded him, as he got to pouring out 2 shots to start off with.

Harry wasn't necessarily planning on imbibing any hard liquor that night, but then Louis was hopping up off the couch with a chipper, "I'll take one!"

So Harry thought to himself, _might as well..._

"Me, too," he told Zayn, from where he now stood, beside Louis, near the outer edge of the island counter.

"I already know I'm about to regret this decision later, but me, three," Liam gave a pursed-lipped smile on his way over to the kitchen. "You gonna be alright drinking tonight, with school in the morning, Lou?"

Louis refrained from rolling his eyes at that because he suddenly felt like a child trying to sit at the adult's table, but he honestly replied, "it wouldn't be the first time I've gone to class with a hangover, Li. I think I'll be okay."

"You're in college?" Harry asked him curiously, to which Louis looked up at him and nodded, as Zayn got to filling up 3 more shot glasses. "Where do you study?"

"UCLA."

"Nice. What's your major?"

"Theater," he answered, with the slightest tinge of pink to his cheeks because he was fully prepared to be judged for it, but that didn't happen.

"Actor?" Harry guessed, having figured that--with a voice and a face as pleasing as his--Louis should be front and center under the spotlight.

Louis was lead role material in Harry's mind, no doubt.

"Playwright," Louis replied, before he received his shot and graciously nodded to Zayn, "thank you."

"That's pretty cool," Harry told Louis, causing his blue eyes to meet his once more, and they almost seemed to glitter from the sudden appraisal.

"Thanks, Harry," Louis smiled warmly, before he held his glass out in front of him.

"To several more well-deserved victory lanes for team _Roush Fenway_ ," Louis toasted, and his smile only widened, when he glanced around to see each of them leaning in to gently tap their glasses against his with proud grins of their own.

"Cheers, boys," Niall nodded.

"Yeah, I'll drink to that," Zayn smirked into his glass, and they all simultaneously knocked their shots back, before they swallowed with a grimace.

**\---**

"Oof," Liam sighed, emphasized by the _clink_ of his shot glass being set on the counter.

They had all partaken in a few more rounds, which left them all feeling a bit drunk, regardless of how heavy or light-weighted they were as individuals.

" _Oof_ , is right. Man, it's been a while since I've shot this shit," Niall momentarily coughed into the crook of his elbow, whilst vaguely gesturing toward the bottle of cognac with his free hand.

"Good thing Mary Jane's got my back," Louis hummed, shamelessly skipping over to his discarded jacket on the couch, where he pulled a small plastic tube from one of the pockets, containing the single blunt he'd rolled on the way over to Zayn's.

"I'm not gonna get you kicked out of your place if I smoke this, right?" he asked Zayn, holding up the blunt for him to see, as he made his way back over to the kitchen.

"Doubt it," Liam answered on Zayn's behalf, with a knowing, mischievous smirk. "Zayn's got his landlord wrapped around his little finger."

Zayn shook his head in amusement at that, before he turned to place the rest of the _Hennessy_ back in the freezer, so it wouldn't become warm.

That's when Liam teasingly chimed in again, "and he's not even gonna bother arguing 'cause he knows it's true."

"What, you sleep with her or something?" Niall asked bluntly, with a curious raise of his brow.

Zayn humbly shrugged, before he began to explain, "back when I first moved in, I was still working to earn my spot on the team, and I was a little low on rent one month. I promised that I'd get it to her soon, but as it turned out, she had a _much_ better solution in mind."

Niall gaped at him.

"Whoa! I was just messing around!" he laughed heartily. "Jesus, Zayn, you _beast_!" he proudly punched his friend's bicep.

It was Liam's turn to laugh then, on his way over to the balcony door. "How are you guys _just now_ finding out about that?"

"Since _you_ apparently left us out of the loop," Niall slurred in response.

So, with a playfully sympathetic half-smile, Louis told Niall & Harry, "if it makes you guys feel any better, I didn't know about it, either."

"Louis is the only real one in this condo," Niall declared, before he moved to grab himself a bottle of _Coors Light_ from the fridge.

" _Hey_ ," Harry jokingly took offense to that, at which point Louis bravely raised a supportive hand onto the small of the man's back.

Louis half-expected Harry to step away from him, or give him a strange look, but he didn't. In fact, Harry seemed to--almost instinctively--shift his weight onto the leg that was closest to Louis, in order to casually lean into his touch.

Before Louis could even begin to process Harry's enticing body language, however, Liam was sliding the balcony door open.

"Yeah, well, only _real ones_ get to tap this blunt, so..." Liam stuck his tongue out at Niall, who laughed and flipped him off in turn.

"You guys want a hit?" Louis drunkenly giggled toward the three teammates, obliviously earning a fond smile from each of them in doing so.

"Would love to, but we can't," Zayn answered with an exaggerated frown.

"Yeah, NASCAR does random drug testing," Harry added with a hint of disappointment laced in his tone as well.

"Oh, okay," Louis nodded understandingly, before Liam beckoned his brother outside.

"Come on, Lou," he said, and Louis was quick to turn away from the rest and join him. "You got a lighter?"

"Always."

Together, they stared out over the downtown Los Angeles skyline in the distance, making sure to puff-puff-pass the blunt back and forth as they did so.

The sun was still in the sky, but steadily approaching the horizon, when Liam spoke up.

"I never got around to asking you, but I'm curious... what do you think of the guys?"

_Don't say you have a crush on Harry._  
_Don't say you have a crush on Harry._  
_Don't say you have a crush on Harry._

"They're pretty cool," Louis settled with. "I like them a lot."

Liam's lips stretched into a proud smile then.

"Cool," he nodded. "For some reason, I was worried that you wouldn't."

"Why?"

"I dunno..." Liam shrugged at that, flicking ash from the end of the blunt, over the balcony railing. "I guess I just figured, since you're _you_... and we're just your typical group of cis-het gear-heads, that you wouldn't show much interest."

"I'm not all that interested in the sport itself, no, but I can still appreciate a nice ride when I see one," Louis shrugged as well, before he craned his head to sneak a glance at Harry, through the glass door. "Especially when the driver's easy on the eyes..."

Liam snorted at that as he passed the half-smoked blunt back to Louis.

"Yeah, Zayn tends to have that effect on most people."

"Didn't mean Zayn," Louis paused to take a hit, before he continued, with a genuine smile, "he is gorgeous, though."

Liam's brows raised in realization whilst he glanced back at Harry, who remained completely oblivious to the conversation being had about him outside, only a few feet away.

" _Harry_??" Liam gaped at his brother, and Louis didn't have to say anything for Liam to have an answer.

The smirk on his face, as he took his next hit, said it all.

"You like him or something?"

Louis shrugged again and passed the blunt back.

"Well, he's straight," Liam said, to which Louis rolled his eyes.

"Yes, as you've all made _abundantly_ _clear_."

"I mean, it's the _truth_..."

Fortunately, Louis was in too good of a mood that night to let his brother's words get him down.

"Well, you know what they say; _Henny-thing is possible~_!"

Liam chuckled at that, but shook his head as he told Louis, "I'm sorry, bro, but you're probably just gonna have to take the L with this one."

"Or, we could let Harry speak for himself..." Louis muttered under his breath, as he simultaneously snatched the blunt away from Liam's fingers.

"Lou, I'm serious," Liam sighed. "I don't want you getting hurt."

"Well--" Louis exasperatedly carded his fingers through his caramel hair for a moment, before he took his next hit and huffed on the exhale. "He's a total dreamboat... and yes, I know, he doesn't swing that way, but a twink can _dream_ , can't he?"

"Yeah," Liam nodded in agreement. "I really am sorry, though, Lou," he gently nudged his brother's elbow with his own, which resulted in the fake half-smile Louis wore in the next instant.

His free hand habitually fiddled with his #28 lanyard as well, which he had forgotten he was even still wearing, until then.

"It's whatever, I guess." Louis shrugged once more and added, "pretty typical of my luck, if you ask me."

Then, he handed the last bit of the blunt back to Liam, who took one final drag, before he tossed the roach of it over the railing.

"I--" Louis gaped dramatically, as he looked over the railing to watch the roach fall to the ground, several feet below. "My roach..."

"Oops," Liam offered him an apologetic look. "For the homies...?" he gave an awkward smile along with his excuse.

"I _cannot_ believe you would do such a thing. I have a bong at home for a reason, you know," he pouted, jokingly crossing his arms over his chest, like a petulant child.

Liam gave another bubbly laugh, and he turned to lead the way back into the condo, while Louis just shook his head and tsked.

"The disrespect."

**\---**

They swiftly achieved their goal of becoming shit-faced, once they finished off the bottle of _Hennessy_ , and resorted to nursing the _Coors Light_ for the rest of the evening.

Only, their bottles were all propped up on circular coasters, on the sleek surface of the coffee table, considering they had migrated to the living room and collectively decided they wanted to relax with a film.

The sun was finally setting in the distance on the other side of the floor-to-ceiling windows, and with the alcohol in their systems steadily beginning to cloud their judgment, they began to bicker with one another over which film in the _Marvel Cinematic Universe_ was superior.

"I dunno, but it's gotta be one of the _Avengers_ ," Zayn had slurred carelessly, when he was asked of his personal opinion.

" _Age of Ultron_ ," Niall thought aloud, where he'd been comfortably squished between Zayn & Liam, on the L-shaped couch.

Harry shook his head distastefully at that. "No. Definitely not."

"The best is _Endgame_. Hands down," Liam gave his own opinion next.

"Still haven't seen that one," Louis admitted then, from his seat next to Harry at the opposite end of the couch.

"How are you gonna have a whole spiderweb tattooed on your shin, and then _not_ go to see _Endgame_?" Liam narrowed his eyes at Louis incredulously.

"Some of us still have schoolwork, Liam."

"Well, some of us are true _Marvel_ stans, Louis," Liam teased him.

"Oh, yeah?" Zayn's brows raised expectantly. "Name all six Infinity Stones."

Liam's face flushed red as he seemed to completely draw a blank.

"Space, Reality, Power, Mind, Time, Soul," Louis answered smoothly, on his brother's behalf, earning impressed expressions from their friends. Niall even held out a fist for Louis to bump with his own, which he did around a drunken giggle. "Unless we're talkin' comics; That's a completely different story."

"I think Louis deserves another beer for that one," Zayn hummed in amusement, seeing as how Louis' last bottle had been resting on the table, empty and completely disregarded, for several minutes.

"You're all a bunch of nerds," Liam pouted.

Louis just laughed at that, and he was about to get up and grab himself a fresh beer from the fridge, when Harry stood from the couch instead, giving two light pats to Louis' knee.

"I got you," he said, to which Louis swallowed thickly and nodded graciously.

"Thank you."

Harry proceeded to clear away all of the empty bottles from the coffee table, without even being asked, before he was striding over to the kitchen. Then, Zayn successfully rented _Endgame_ on-demand, Harry returned to his spot with Louis' beer, and the five friends settled into the comfort of the couch once more.

In the beginning of the film, Tony Stark had recorded a goodbye message for his lover, Pepper Potts, as he was stuck drifting through deep space in a totaled spacecraft, for several grueling days.

The oxygen supply was due to run out by the following morning.

 _"Please, know... that when I drift off, I will think about you... because it's always you..."_ Tony's voice was barely above a whisper, when he spoke directly into the glowing eye of his mangled Iron Man helmet, with which he'd been recording himself.

Louis hadn't necessarily planned on crying that night, but there he was, bicep-to-bicep with his crush, with a single tear streaming down his cheek.

The scene was emotional enough on its own, but having also been aware of the events that took place within the previous _Avengers_ movies ( _Infinity War_ in particular), Louis really couldn't help it when his emotions finally began to overtake him.

The alcohol he'd consumed wasn't exactly doing him any favors, either, and initially, he didn't think anyone else had noticed, but apparently, Harry had. Louis' entire body went rigid for a moment, when he felt a strong arm drape over his shoulders, followed by a warm hand soothingly rubbing along his bicep.

His eyes glanced over at the set of ring-adorned fingers that were caressing his flesh and igniting goosebumps in their wake, before he slowly craned his head in the opposite direction. He tried his best to quietly discern what exactly was happening, and he was a little taken aback because Harry appeared quite calm and collected in that moment.

While his green eyed gaze was fixed to the flat screen on the wall, his touch was so warm, and his scent was so damn enticing, Louis found it a little difficult to avert his focus.

Nevertheless, he peered over at Liam and their friends inconspicuously. Niall had already fallen asleep, between Zayn & Liam, who stared up at the film with looks of sympathy painted on their features. Neither of them seemed to notice Harry's sudden advance, though, so Louis shamelessly proceeded to lean into the comforting warmth of Harry's chest, letting his head come to rest against his pec.

"Sorry. The indica's kicking my ass," he whispered to Harry with a weak smile. "I'm not usually this emotional."

Harry simply hummed, before he whispered back to him, just as quietly, "don't be sorry. You're okay."

A little later on in the film--as the remaining protagonists time-traveled in _several_ attempts to fix the antagonists' wrongdoings--Harry had slowly but surely reclined, until he was laying comfortably upon his back, resulting in the way Louis was slotted within the slight gap between Harry's side and the back of the couch.

He let his lithe fingertips trace over the ink of Harry's chest tattoos, given that they could easily be seen through the thin, white fabric of his t-shirt. So Harry let his arm comfortably come to rest over the curve of Louis' waist and, by the time the movie was over, Liam & Louis had fallen asleep as well.

Zayn glanced over at the opposite end of the couch then, and he couldn't help the way his heart swelled at the sight of Harry absentmindedly carding his fingers through Louis' feathery hair, as he watched the credits roll in a peaceful silence.

Zayn didn't tease him for it this time around, either.

"Hey, Haz," he whispered to him.

"What's up?" Harry whispered back, trying his best not to wake Louis in doing so.

"You heading home or staying over?" he asked curiously. "I don't mind either way. Just getting a head count."

Harry glanced down at Louis then.

"Think I'm gonna stay."

"Alright," Zayn nodded around a yawn. "I'm gonna exile these two to the guest room."

So Harry watched, as Zayn gently woke Niall & Liam, where they'd been slumped against one another in an uncomfortable-looking upright position. Then, the three of them vaguely resembled a small horde of zombies, mumbling and groaning incoherently, as their feet shuffled their inebriated bodies across the condo.

After they disappeared down the hallway, the door to the guest room promptly slammed--due to either Liam or Niall tiredly kicking it shut behind them--and the sound of it caused Louis to stir. He was still half-asleep, but even so, a blissful smile spread across his pretty pink lips as he looked up at Harry through heavy-lidded eyes.

Harry felt completely frozen, when Louis shifted to straddle his waist, before hefull on _kissed him on the mouth_. He released a shaky breath, once Louis inevitably pulled away with a sleepy hum of approval, and that's when Louis _really_ began to wake up.

"Wait a minute..." he mumbled.

Louis attempted to wipe the sleep from his eyes, but they immediately widened when he realized their faces were mere _centimeters_ apart, and if this was really happening, then Louis was momentarily confused as to why Harry hadn't pushed him away already.

Louis instantly sat up, and upon doing so, he realized that he'd been straddling Harry as well.

"This isn't a dream..." he thought aloud and, as endearing as it was that Louis apparently dreamed of him, Harry shook his head.

"I'm afraid not," he pursed his lips because he wasn't sure how Louis was going to react.

"Oh, my God..." Louis tried to scramble away, but Harry's palms slid up onto Louis' thighs in order to keep him from going anywhere.

Louis then opted for hiding his blood-flushed and embarrassed face in his hands, instead, to which Harry carefully reached for Louis' wrists to try and pry them away.

"Hey, it's okay. Don't--"

"I'm _so sorry_ ," Louis gushed.

Even when Harry finally managed to pry his hands away from his face, Louis' eyes were still wide with panic and--for reasons unbeknownst to him--it made Harry's heart ache.

"Lou--"

"I should go," Louis decided.

However, with the way Harry immediately seized the end of his #28 lanyard and gently began to guide him back down onto his chest, Louis found himself thinking he'd allow himself to be caught in Harry's snares like this, any time the man saw fit.

"What did I tell you earlier, about being sorry?" Harry looked up at him with kind eyes, despite his stern tone of voice. "Hm?"

"Right," Louis swallowed meekly. "Sorr--"

Then, in order to keep him from apologizing again, Harry surprised Louis with a tender kiss of his own, making the younger man squeak. He could've swore that this was all just part of some long-winded wet dream, and that he'd inevitably wake up back in his own apartment, any second now.

But, that didn't happen.

In fact, Louis' breath caught in his throat, when the driver easily teased his pliant mouth open with a brief nibble to his lower lip.

"Fuck, Harry--" he cursed softly, and slipped his fingers into Harry's hair, before he finally got a taste of his tongue.

The hints of cognac weren't all that surprising, but the way Harry showed no signs of hesitation beneath him that night, was _definitely_ doing Louis' head in.

That's when Louis realized that he could feel the way Harry's dick had apparently grown hot and solid against his inner thigh, within the confines of his jeans.

"Hold on," Louis panted quietly, firmly pressing his palms against Harry's chest, in order to abruptly lean away from their kissing. "You're straight," he shook his head in confusion, "aren't you...?"

"Maybe I am..." Harry shrugged, grasping Louis' lanyard in his fist once more, before he spoke up again, "or... maybe I'm _not_."

"Who are you, _The Riddler_?" Louis joked.

"You know, not everything has to be so black & white..." Harry hummed thoughtfully. "Can't we just enjoy each other's company? _Without_ all the labels?"

He curiously looked up at Louis, whose lips parted in wonder, due to Harry's unexpectedly open-minded response.

"Right..." Louis nodded in agreement. "You're _so_ right," he moved his hands up to Harry's face then, before he leaned in to kiss him, again and again.

So Harry moved to sit up, with a palm pressed firmly to the small of Louis' back, in order to keep him from slipping out of his lap with the movement. Every now and then, they would reluctantly part for a few short moments, so they could catch their breath, before they'd get right back to it.

Louis gulped, and his eyelids fluttered shut, when Harry dipped his head down to kiss along the column of his throat.

" _God_ , Haz--those lips..." Louis moaned, and his inner thighs instinctively pressed against Harry's hips when he felt the man's fingertips, gently dragging the low-cut neck of his shirt to the side. Then, he began to suckle on the flesh of his exposed clavicle, sure to leave a mark.

"That _tongue_..." Louis shivered.

"Mm," Harry's arms wound tightly around Louis' waist, before he experimentally rolled his hips forward, in a slow grind against Louis' denim clad crotch. He didn't seem to object, so Harry repeated the movement again, ever so slowly.

"Is this okay?" he mumbled against Louis' neck, just below his ear, before he teasingly nibbled the lobe.

"Y-Yes," Louis answered, so Harry carefully adjusted their position, properly sitting up on the couch, with his feet on the floor and Louis in his lap. This made it much easier for their hips to be in sync when Louis began to grind down against him as well.

However, when Louis quietly hissed, due to the amount of dry friction that'd been building up between them, Harry took it upon himself to reach for the button of Louis' jeans. His hand remained there, as if silently asking for permission, so Louis broke away from their bruising kisses and glanced down at Harry's hand, before he quickly met his gaze again and nodded, letting him pop it undone.

Then, Harry carefully pulled the zipper down, whereupon he was met with the sight of Louis' dick; The head of which was already glistening and wet, as it rested against his navel, surpassing a thin layer of red lace.

 _He's wearing panties..._ Harry thought to himself, _why the fuck is that so hot?_

His expression in that moment wasn't very telling, though, so Louis began to feel a little self-conscious. He moved to pull the hem of his shirt down to cover himself, but Harry was quick to stop him.

"What are you doing?" Harry asked him, and his brows were furrowed in concern when he reached for Louis' hands, but Louis just sighed and hung his head in shame.

"I..." he tried. "I don't know..."

"Lou," Harry squeezed his hands, but Louis still wouldn't meet his gaze, so he resorted to tilting Louis' chin up with his thumb and index finger. "Louis, look at me..." he said softly. "What's up?"

"I--" Louis sighed again because, while he knew that he'd have to have this conversation with anyone he'd let in his pants, he still wasn't entirely confident about it.

"I just... really enjoy wearing stuff like this," he admitted sheepishly. "It makes me feel pretty, and I like feeling pretty, but I know it's not everyone's cup of tea--"

"Well, it doesn't matter what anyone else thinks," Harry asserted. "It's _your_ body, Louis. You can dress it up or down, however you see fit, and if anybody has a problem with that, you just tell 'em they can suck your lace clad cock."

Louis giggled happily, when Harry abruptly stood with him in his arms, gently laid him back against the couch cushions, and slid a gentle palm over his achingly hard dick.

"So, you--you don't mind it...?" Louis asked because he could feel Harry's touch against his bare skin, through the tiny gaps in the lace.

Harry immediately shook his head in response.

"Not at all."

With that, Louis bit into his lower lip to try and stifle the beaming smile Harry put on his face, before he slowly bucked his hips upward, silently encouraging him to keep going.

"What about _them_?" Louis helplessly whimpered, in reference to the other three men, who had each fallen into a deep sleep just down the hall.

"They're asleep," Harry assured him. "We're good."

He removed his hand from Louis' jeans then, just so he could lay him down and rest the weight of his lower half between Louis' legs, instead.

"Well, w-what are you thinking?" Louis asked curiously, while Harry's palms were pressed against the couch cushion to either side of his head.

"I'm thinking I'd _really_ like to make you come all over those pretty red panties of yours."

"I think I'd really like that, too," Louis nodded fervently, gaining a fond smirk from the older man, who began to grind against him once more.

Having gained some of his confidence back, Louis brought his hands down along Harry's sides, before he slid them beneath his shirt and practically swooned at the feeling of Harry's toned chest against his fingertips. Then, Louis hiked the hem of Harry's shirt up to his shoulder blades, where he proceeded to let his blunt nails drag over the flesh of Harry's back, before he brought his hands around to press at the man's nipples with his thumbs.

Louis earned a pleasurable shiver in response when he sat up the slightest bit, replaced one of his thumbs with his lips and tongue, and made Harry moan aloud into the space around them. To keep himself from becoming even louder, Harry slipped his fingers into the soft hair at the back of Louis' head, and began to guide him back down against the cushion.

Before Louis could begin to worry that he'd done something wrong, Harry slipped his tongue into Louis' mouth and kept a firm hold of his hair, causing the younger man to melt into a puddle of desirous whines beneath his weight.

After a moment, Harry pulled away, so they could catch their breath. However, he ironically left Louis breathless once more, when he told him, " _God_ , you're perfect."

"I'm--" Louis met his eyes again.

"Fuckin' stunning," Harry interrupted and, before Louis could try to deny it, he drunkenly began to ramble. "Lips of an angel, eyes like the sea--"

"You hardly know me," Louis bashfully shook his head, to which Harry gave his hair another light tug, causing him to tilt his head back the slightest bit.

"You gonna give me a chance to get to know you?" Harry mumbled against his throat, and Louis' train of thought momentarily chugged off, as Harry began to press delicate kisses along the length of his jawline, but he snapped himself out of it.

"I--Harry, I'm _out_..." he told him, referring to the metaphorical closet, in which Harry may or may not've been hiding in at the time. "You could have _all_ _of me_..."

Upon hearing that, Harry froze up for a split second, and Louis almost didn't notice it, but he _definitely_ did.

"...if you wanted..." Louis added, with a nervous beat to his heart that Harry could feel against his own, as he hesitantly shifted to look Louis in the eye again.

"Right now, I _really_ just wanna make you come," Harry said simply, and it made Louis realize that he was being sort of invasive, so he just nodded and willed himself to focus on the way their bodies moved against one another, instead.

So Harry release Louis' hair, and leaned in again to taste his tongue, while he finally reached to undo the button and zip of his own jeans. The clothed underside of his cock promptly bumped against Louis' in the next instant, causing both of them to groan into the other's mouth in unison, before Harry began to properly thrust his hips forward again.

Louis softly panted as a result, blindly grabbing for one of Harry's hands, which he then brought up to his throat. Harry quickly took the hint, wrapped his hand around Louis' neck, and applied the slightest bit of pressure with his fingertips, while he steadily picked up the pace of his thrusts.

The younger man's smile widened with his movements, so Harry figured he must've been doing a decent job. He raked his teeth over his lower lip, as he drank in the sight of Louis--all flushed cheeks and pliant mewls--underneath him.

"You're a little glutton for pain, aren't you, baby?"

"Fuck," Louis cursed, trying his absolute best not to let the pet name go to his head.

"Yeah, you are," Harry's smirk was momentarily accentuated by the tip of his tongue at the corner of his mouth. "I bet you've got all kinds of kinks no one knows about."

"Ah~" Louis moaned quite a bit louder than he was intending to, leading him to bite into his lower lip in an attempt to stifle the sounds he made.

"A little masochism," Harry surmised, "with a hint of exhibitionism...?"

"I take it you're pretty sadistic," Louis thought aloud, bringing a hand up to hold onto Harry's wrist, where his hand had still been carefully wrapped around Louis' throat. "You like to watch me suffer?"

"Maybe I _do_."

By that point, Louis knew he wasn't going to last very much longer.

"Still wanna watch me come?"

"Oh, _you know_ I do," Harry groaned at that and, after a few more shallow thrusts of his hips, Louis was gently pushing Harry's pelvis away from his own, reaching for his dick, tossing his head back against the couch cushion, and coming into his fist with a high-pitched yelp.

He bit into his lower lip once more, in order to refrain from waking up the entire building, as he rode out the remnants of his orgasm with weak little rolls of his hips.

"Holy shit..." Louis giggled, staring up at the ceiling in wonder, "so that just happened..."

Harry stared reverently at Louis, where he was knelt between the younger man's thighs, panting quietly and reveling in the sight of Louis post-orgasm; His glowing skin, rose red cheeks, and kiss-swollen lips.

_He did that._

"Want me to...?" Louis snapped Harry out of his momentary trance with a suggestive glance at his crotch, so Harry looked down and realized he was still hard as a rock, with the shiny wet head of his dick poking out of the elastic of his boxers.

"Oh, no--" Harry shook his head, not wishing to pressure Louis into doing anything he didn't want to, as he scooted back a bit to pull his jeans up. "I'm okay... thank you."

"Oh... okay," Louis nodded, forcing a smile for Harry, as he sat up and did the same with his own pants.

Louis would obviously respect Harry's wishes, should he decide that this was all just a drunken mistake, but he sincerely hoped that wouldn't be the case, and that the experience they shared with one another that night wasn't a one-time-only deal.

They took turns in the bathroom then, but Harry insisted that Louis go first, so he moved to do so with a gracious nod.

After closing the door behind him, he flicked on the light, and his lips instantly parted in awe of the scarlet marks on his neck and collarbones. He ran gentle fingertips over the bruised skin, before he turned on the sink and quickly washed his hands, letting the water run for a moment while he stepped out of his jeans and peeled off his come-soaked panties. Then he grimaced, as he stuffed them into the pocket of his jacket, which he'd be tossing in the washer the second he got home.

Harry took a bit longer in the bathroom than Louis did, which was understandable considering he hadn't come yet, and Louis couldn't help but imagine what Harry might've looked like mid-orgasm, as he melted into the couch once again. So he distracted himself from his wandering thoughts by pulling out his phone, and by the time Harry returned to the living room, Louis was sound asleep with the device loosely grasped in his hand.

Harry carefully reached for his phone, locked it for him, and set it on the coffee table, before he moved to slot himself between Louis' body and the back of the couch. Post-orgasm, with his arm lazily draped over Louis' waist, and the warm, fuzzy feeling of drunkenness, Harry fell asleep in no time.

**\---**

"Hey, Lou..." Harry called him in the hallway, as they had been the first to leave Zayn's condo the following morning. "Can I talk to you for a sec?"

So Louis turned on his heel and faced Harry, politely answering, "sure," despite the thrum of his heart beating anxiously between his lungs.

Harry nodded his head toward the stairwell then, and Louis promptly followed him over to it, so they could speak with one another somewhat privately.

"Look..." Harry began.

 _Ah, fuck,_ Louis thought to himself, _here we go..._

"I just wanted to say, thank you."

"Uhh..." Louis raised a confused brow at that. "You're welcome? Not really sure what I'm being thanked for, exactly..."

"For last night," Harry clarified.

_How could I possibly forget?_

"And for just... I dunno... being _you_ ," Harry shrugged simply, making Louis internally swoon. "For being so chill and open-minded. You didn't have to let me experiment with you like that... but I'm grateful, and I had a lot of fun..."

"I'm glad you had a good time... honestly, I thought it was pretty great," Louis bashfully admitted.

"Cool," Harry smiled at him.

"And you don't need to worry about me; I won't kiss and tell," Louis smiled back.

"Thanks..." Harry nodded. "I'd appreciate that."

"Of course," Louis nodded as well, before he hesitantly added, "but uh... if you ever feel like giving it another go," he gestured vaguely between the two of them, " _without_ company," he tilted his head toward Zayn's condo, "you should hit me up."

Harry's lips parted, and his brows raised, as he was momentarily stunned by Louis' generous offer.

"Uh..." he bit into his lower lip, seeming to struggle within himself to make a decision on the spot.

"I'm not entirely sure if that's a _no_ ," Louis giggled fondly at the man's sudden bout of shyness, "but if it _isn't_ , I'll need your phone, so I can give you my number..."

Harry reached for his phone without hesitation, causing Louis' cheeks to heat up, as he quickly typed in the passcode and handed it over. So Louis added his number to Harry's contacts before he passed the phone back.

"See you around, Haz," he hummed, turning to leave with a mischievous grin on his face.

"See you," Harry said, swallowing thickly, whilst he was simply left to gawk at Louis as he walked away.

Once the younger man was out of sight, Harry glanced down at his phone to read the name of his new contact, and he found himself greatly anticipating the next time they'd see one another.


End file.
